Malaysia

The Malaysian Government announced the New Economic Model in March 2010 and is now putting forth its efforts to join the ranks of developed countries. Several issues must be resolved in order to achieve this goal: transformation into a high value-added economy; harmonization of development and environmental protection; equal education and working opportunities; and protection of the socially vulnerable. In Malaysia, JICA's cooperation is focused on three priority areas: 1) Supporting a balanced development toward Malaysia becoming a high-income nation , 2) Response to common issues in East Asian region, and 3) the Japan-Malaysia Development Partnership beyond the East Asian region. In December 2011, a Japanese ODA loan agreement was signed with the government of Malaysia for the Development Project for the Malaysia-Japan International Institute of Technology (MJIIT). MJIIT is an academic institution for introducing Japanese-style engineering education into Malaysia, and JICA is providing assistance including technical cooperation in partnership with 25 Japanese universities (as of October 2013).